General aviation aircraft, such as propeller aircraft and private jets, are typically fueled via a fuel port accessible generally on an upper surface of the plane's wing. Some fuel spillage is likely as the aviation lineman either inserts the fuel filling nozzle or withdraws it after fueling. It is generally desirable to keep the spilled fuel from contact with the plane's painted surfaces, to capture any spillage for safety and environmental reasons, and to guard against accidental paint scratching and/or other damage from contact with the fuel nozzle, fuel hose, or the fuel filler cap.
To address the spillage of fuel during aircraft refueling, many flight line personnel use a plastic or rubber mat and cut an opening therethrough to be positioned on the aircraft wing with the opening aligned with the fuel filling port. Indeed, these mats are typically improvised from car-floor mats or front-door welcome mats. Moreover, some mats may not be absorbent at all. Accordingly, spilled fuel is absorbed by the mat and the mat protects the underlying wing surface. Unfortunately, these improvised fuel spillage mats are typically relatively expensive, and require modification to form the opening. These fuel mats are used multiple times and tend to accumulate fuel and dirt and acquire an undesired odor. Such improvised mats can typically also absorb water, as well as fuel, and can quickly become relatively heavy and present a contamination/proper disposal issue.
So-called “fuel bibs” and “fuel collars” are also available for vehicles, such as boats, to slide over a fuel filler neck or a fuel nozzle to catch drips and overflow. Unfortunately such devices may be awkward to use, and may not adequately protect the adjacent vehicle surface from unintended contact, since they are typically fairly compact. Some of these fuel bibs may also comprise a material that is not absorbent of fuel, but rather that shed spilled fuel onto the adjacent ground area. This may not be desirable from an environmental impact point of view.